2023-04-28 04:21:01
After two atypical years, the year 2023 returns to the usual levels in the field of business failures (opening of a safeguard procedure, receivership or direct judicial liquidation). This is revealed by the figures recently published by the Altares group, a specialist in business data. With 14,317 insolvency proceedings opened this first quarter of 2023, the level of insolvencies increased by nearly 44% compared to the first three months of 2022, returning to pre-crisis levels.
Strong increase in safeguards, reorganizations and judicial liquidations
The number of backup procedures increased by almost 40% this first quarter. Reserved for companies that are not in default, they only represent 2% of all failures. The number of receivership proceedings, for its part, increased by nearly 50% over the period. They represent almost one in four decisions (23%) and target larger structures. Finally, the number of direct judicial liquidations pronounced this first quarter increased by nearly 42%, reaching its highest level since 2017.
Sharp increase in insolvencies of SMEs and ETIs
In this context, very young companies are showing unusual resilience. Only 1,520 companies less than three years old defaulted in the first quarter, ie 21% less over one year. While VSEs (fewer than 10 employees) remain by far the most fragile (92% of failures), the number of defaulting SMEs and ETIs has increased by 59% over one year, reaching a level higher than those recorded beginning of 2016. At the start of the year, SME failures were particularly numerous in the textile-clothing sector, followed by construction, road transport of goods, catering and social activities (home help and social action , especially). Of the 59,000 jobs threatened, 12,000 concern Orpea (Ehpad group), in the accelerated safeguard procedure.
Variable increases depending on the region
The number of insolvency proceedings initiated more than doubled in Corsica (+120%) during the first quarter, but it barely exceeded its 2020 level. higher than those observed at the start of 2018: New Aquitaine, Occitanie, Hauts-de-France, Pays-de-la-Loire and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. Most of the other regions posted levels close to the values for the first quarter of 2019. In Île-de-France, the 3,000 procedure mark was thus exceeded for the first time since the start of 2019. Only Normandy, Grand-Est and the overseas departments and territories are still well below 2019 levels.
The business sectors are at best returning to their values at the start of 2019
Real estate agencies, retail, food and multi-department trade in particular (sports and leisure, clothing, optics and personal care are resisting better), restaurants and road transport of goods are part of the most fragile sectors. Construction is also affected, while remaining at a lower level than before the crisis, due to the good resistance of the construction industry. In the food industry, insolvencies, on the other hand, reached their highest “high” in more than ten years, while the increase was limited in agriculture, where it reached a level close to the start of 2020.
Finally, we observe that the increase in the opening of proceedings, which was more concentrated on activities intended for the consumer in 2022, has extended to B to B activities (administrative services, communication and management consulting, architectural services and engineering, scientific and technical activities), beginning of 2023.
More than a normalization, the premises of a strong acceleration?
According to the director of studies of the Altares group, Thierry Million, this trend is explained by the economic slowdown, inflation, shortness of cash flow and access to financing which has become more complicated. ” More than a normalization, it is a strong rebound in business failures that our economy must face. The return to the situation before Covid, 2019, is already there, and it is now 2018 and its 55,000 faults that are in the line of sight. After recording strong growth in 2017, the French economy experienced a phase of marked slowdown in 2018.
Miren LARTIGUE
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